Become a Personal Finance Director

If you want to become a personal finance director, we have great news for you. The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) have launched an initiative to help accountants reach this position.

The initiative consists of a free online community with the intention of placing chartered accountants in a position where they are able to offer financial support to SME (small and medium-sized enterprises) owners and managers. ICAEW’s Personal Finance Planning Community gives members access to all areas of financial planning to help boost their knowledge, enabling them to become personal finance directors.

If you’re thinking “whoa, I’m not even a chartered accountant yet,” do not fear. A collaboration between the Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT) and ICAEW gives AAT Level 4 graduates the opportunity to qualify as an ICAEW Chartered Accountant in as little as two years. This is called the AAT-ACA (Association of Chartered Accountants) Fast Track route. Chartered accountants can then progress to a personal finance director role thanks to assistance from ICAEW’s Personal Finance Planning Community. John Gaskell, head of personal finance planning at ICAEW, said:

“More chartered accountants should broaden their horizons to factor this personal finance market into their remit, as they are best placed to provide the support that is required for owners/managers to achieve their personal financial goals.”

Please see ICAEW’s AAT-ACA Fast Track page for further advice and a step-by-step guide on how the fast track route works.

Is a Personal Finance Director Role For You?

Personal finance directors help their clients plan for the future by assessing their needs and putting plans in place to develop their financial strategy.

ICAEW describes personal finance planning as an area in which chartered accountants are able to use their expertise and trusted relationships to help SME owners/managers and their families better manage their personal financial and investment affairs through “much needed” “highly valued” lifetime wealth planning.

Through personal financial planning, chartered accountants are able to offer a range of services to their clients beyond the traditional business area. This range of professional advice is likely to cover areas such as estate planning, investments, pensions and so on; personal finance directors ensure these are optimised so they are as cost-efficient as possible.

In November 2017, ICAEW announced there are currently “thousands of personal finance director roles available across the UK.” They added that “with an estimated 40,000 individuals with… pension pots retiring each year… the demand for trusted personal financial planning advice has never been greater.”

Popular category

Aspiring Accountants is an online resource covering accounting qualifications, training providers and general news from the accounting world. We aim to offer both accounting specific and general professional advice for students of accountancy, as well as information for those looking to retrain.

This website uses Cookies to give you the best experience. To accept cookies, click the 'Accept' button or view our [wpca_cookie_policy_link] to find out more. [wpca_btn_reset_consent]

We use cookies to analyse and improve the navigation and content of the website and to provide social media features. Find out more about our Cookie Policy. You consent to our cookies if you continue to use our website.